19 Responses to “An Aid to Understanding Free Speech Discussions …”

The absurdity of Trumpland is truly comic were it not for the damage being inflicted upon the institution’s of our republic.

This so called president and his so called national security advisor are an embarrassment.

Have we ever seen so many serious self inflicted errors by a new administration?

Pointing out the failures of an obviously flawed mission is an insult to the Kia Navy seal? Then what does Trump’s year’s long critique of Iraq make of the thousands of Kia and thousands of wounded in iraq?

Perhaps a thoughtful correspondent would note that Clinton’s gays in the military was a distracting imbroglio in its day. Perhaps the failure of health reform in 1994. But that took years to play out.

Perhaps a thoughtful and less partisan commentator would note that the Iraq debacle was unleashed and mismanaged by a prior President.

The status of forces agreement which established the parameters for the drawdown of us troops was also negotiated under that prior admin.

A thoughtful commentator would note that public support for the occupation of Iraq had collapsed. Lastly, a thoughtful commentator would note the tremendous strain the Iraq occupation had placed on active duty and reserve forces of that time.

And what pray tell has Herr Drumpf done to date to address the issue you raise?

Trump is already scaring the crap out of ISIS. Here’s a great article about how their recruits are seeking to get out of Iraq by claiming back pain as an excuse not to fight. This is what winning looks like…

I think you are not seeing the whole picture yet. If I was a Christian in Iraq, I’d feel a lot better about the chances of survival for myself and family under the Trump administration. He is already seeking to make it easier for Christian refugees to come to the U.S.

President Trump has also been condemned for signaling he will give priority to persecuted religious minorities in the Middle East, which means admitting higher numbers of Christian and Yazidi refugees fleeing beheadings, drownings, and other forms of mass torture.

I think your Obama nostalgia has given you a touch of amnesia. Obama’s early roll out of his administration nominees was a complete disaster. Remember this list of disappointments? Below is a “Top 10” list of the Obama’s nominees and appointees who resigned in disgrace.

1. Obama’s nominee to chair the National Intelligence Council, Chas Freeman, withdrew over questions about payments from the Saudi Arabian government, business ties to the state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp., and negative statements he made about U.S. support for Israel. After he resigned he issued a combative public statement blaming the “Israel lobby” for “character assassination.”

2. White House “Green Jobs” czar Van Jones resigned after he it was discovered he signed a statement in support of a 9/11 “Truther” group.

3. Former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-South Dakota) withdrew his nomination to become Health and Human Services Secretary after it was discovered he failed to properly pay his taxes.

5. Governor Bill Richardson (D-New Mexico) withdrew his nomination to become Commerce Secretary because of an ongoing investigation into whether he doled out government contracts in exchange for campaign money.

6. White House Social Secretary Desiree Rogers resigned after posing for photos at a White House dinner that a couple crashed through security to attend.

7. Jonathan Z. Cannon, nominated to serve as deputy director at the Environmental Protection Administration, withdrew over questions about a defunct non-profit, America’s Clean Water Foundation, where he served as a board member. In 2007, EPA auditors accused the non-profit of mismanaging $25 million in taxpayer funding.

8. Jide Zeitlin, Obama’s nominee to serve as U.S ambassador to the United Nations for management and reform withdrew his name while being accused of identify fraud and improper business practices.

9. Erroll Southers, Obama’s nominee to serve as director of the Travel Security Administration, withdrew after refusing to answer questions about collective bargaining and false testimony he presented to Congress.

10. Maj. Gen. Robert A. Harding, Obama’s second nominee to service as director of the Travel Security Administration, withdrew his name after it was discovered he received “service disabled veteran” status for sleep apnea.

Again, this is a matter of perspective. The biggest blunders of the early Obama administration were the way they fumbled the nomination process for Sen. Tom Daschle (D-South Dakota) for the Health and Human Services Secretary and Governor Bill Richardson (D-New Mexico) for the Commerce Secretary.

These early setbacks were a sign of the annoying incompetence of the Obama administration. They were rookie mistakes which might have been avoided by a more experienced chief executive. Nothing comparable has happened to Trump.

Remember, Obama had never served as a governor or a CEO. He was, as Edward Klein noted, The Amateur. If you or your friends were ever persecuted by the IRS under the Obama administration, then you would know that his administration was not scandal free.

Here’s my take on what it was like to discover errant IRS agents at work right where my wife and I live in Laguna Niguel, CA.

I am not following this discussion closely, but there is no doubt that there is substantial voter fraud. Now, I find Trump’s claim of 3+ million fraud votes absurd, but there is little doubt that voter fraud exists.

“On Sunday, George Stephanopoulos asked Miller about Trump’s consistently absurd and unsubstantiated voter-fraud claims, particularly that “thousands” of people were bussed from Massachusetts to New Hampshire to vote in the November election, which led to Hillary Clinton winning the state and the ousting of incumbent Republican New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte.”

Have at it.

And while you are at it, why not take a whack at whether Trump’s assertions regarding the murder rate in the US are remotely accurate.

Perhaps you can go for the trifecta and settle whether Trump’s inauguration crowd on the mall was larger than the crowd in 2009.